‘Endgame’ Marks the End of an Era

As the first ten years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) come to a close, fans prepare for what will no doubt be an emotional end for several characters.

*Avengers: Infinity War spoilers below*

On April 26th, Avengers: Endgame will storm into theaters ready to smash box office records and hopefully exceed the expectations of critics and fans alike. After this year’s Avengers: Infinity War left the Marvel Universe decimated, viewers will be trembling with anticipation as they wait to see what has become of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes since the final moments of Infinity War. While Endgame is no longer simply titled “Infinity War: Part Two“, the film should not be regarded as a sequel, but as a continuation of the arc started in last year’s release.

One major reason fans are nervous is that with the MCU celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2018, it has become time for a changing of the guard in terms of the prominent characters leading the franchise. Many actors’ deals have expired, including Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, and several other members of the original Avengers team. Chris Evans shared what seemed to be a heartfelt goodbye to Captain America on Twitter a few months ago, leading many fans to believe that the Captain will make a heroic sacrifice in order to defeat Thanos or bring back the characters killed in the final moments of Infinity War.

An interesting thing about Infinity War‘s ending is that most of the heroes that survived “the snap” were those original characters. These will be the main characters that will have to band together to fight Thanos, but they will be joined by two others. Ant-Man was trapped in the Quantum realm during the snap, surviving, but without a way to get back to Earth as of this moment. The other character who may have an impact is Captain Marvel, whose long-awaited solo outing storms into theaters on March 8, 2019, less than two months before Avengers: Endgame. Throughout the comics, Captain Marvel has been heavily linked with the Quantum realm, so she will probably be instrumental in rescuing Ant-Man and defeating Thanos. There will be many fan theories as to what will happen in this end-of-an-era flick, but the whole world will know the truth on April 26th.